Armed Storm

Introduction

Chapter 1 Old Man, Just You Wait

The best and the worst have created history, while the mediocre have merely propagated the race.
I don't know who the hell said that, but humanity, driven by a strong desire to survive, dealt a severe blow to the Zago race, which claims to reproduce infinitely, and successfully broke through the 30 billion population mark as they entered the era of interstellar aviation.
Of course, this includes humans, Iventians, Ketians, and a complex mix of hybrids.
The Pan-Solar System Alliance adheres to the principle of deepening the solar system and continuous exploration, building the solar system into a home for humanity. Earth, due to its special significance and advantageous conditions, will always be the center, ... even though it really has no advantages in living conditions.
The Moon, as the stronghold of the Iventians, has withstood the trials of war and time, and has now become a center of technology and culture, also known as Heaven.
Mars has now become an important living planet for humanity, and Ceres, located between Mars and Jupiter, has also been fully developed, serving as Mars' moon.
However, the only real breakthrough point is Venus. The other planets in the solar system lack development potential; it would be better to build space cities directly. But since the technology for space jumping matured, after hundreds of years of continuous attempts, failures, and retries, humanity finally discovered three planets suitable for human habitation in the Andromeda Galaxy, named Dawn, Hope, and Alpha. They are places similar to Earth, and with humanity's current technology and explosive population, they quickly became humanity's second homeland.
In the last hundred years, humanity made another breakthrough. A space exploration fleet called Norton discovered a planet suitable for human habitation when they jumped to the Sagittarius star system. This planet was also named Norton, its significance akin to discovering a new continent in ancient times, and this exploration team became super-rich overnight, a success that only happens once in hundreds of thousands of attempts.
The ship heading to Norton in the Sagittarius star system is about to depart. Please board as soon as possible.
The sweet voice of the space attendant was always so enchanting.
At the boarding gate, a group of people waved desperately, and those on the ship cheered, but everyone's gaze was filled with reluctance.
This was the fifth batch of pioneers heading to Norton. The three planets in the Andromeda Galaxy were a paradise for human immigrants, having developed complete and advanced living facilities after three hundred years of construction, with welfare, education, and military defense all meeting or exceeding solar system standards. However, Norton... was still too primitive, especially with the pervasive Zago race, which was as tenacious as some antique-level cockroaches on Earth, evolving alongside humanity.
This was the second phase of the development plan for Norton, and most willing to go to such a place were those whose lives weren't great, hoping to improve their lives in two years on Norton, mostly in their thirties or even older.
But among the crowd, there was a figure that looked incredibly young, seemingly only fourteen or fifteen. The boy gazed at the farewell area, where an old man with a red nose waved his hat desperately, his eyes red, clearly having cried. What reason could there be to send such a young child onto a ship like this?
As the boarding ramp was retracted, the farewell crowd went wild, tears and snot flowing, the old man jumping up and down, hoping to catch one last glimpse of his child.
Wang Dong looked at the excited old man, a brilliant smile on his face, slowly raised his right hand, and solemnly gave him the middle finger, shouting, Old bastard, I'll deal with you when I get back!
The old man's hand continued to wave, but one finger was raised high, wearing a sly grin.
In the year 2565, Wang Dong, who had never left the capital, was leaving home for the first time to go to the godforsaken Norton, a place where not even birds would shit. The uncertain future was a heavy blow for a young man who had just turned fifteen.
Reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles, but this journey to Sagittarius was far more than just thousands... it had to start from the beginning.
Wang Dong was an orphan, said to have parents who were martyrs, raised by a kind old man. However, after Wang Dong became aware, he felt the old man was only in it for the government subsidies. But with the now perfect welfare system, Wang Dong naturally wouldn't suffer any abuse. Still, a young man with a positive outlook naturally hoped to become a soldier, and at fifteen, he had reached the age where he could awaken.
About three hundred years ago, a brilliant star appeared in humanity, known as a figure who influenced human history, General Li Feng, the Seven-Star General. He was the only Seven-Star in human history, representing the respect of humans, Iventians, and Ketians. At that time, humanity had just learned to use space-jumping technology, which attracted an attack from the Ketians. Of course, the Ketians were defeated and became part of humanity's dominion. However, the real disaster came from the Zago race, a terrifying species that thrived on the destruction of civilizations. General Li Feng led humanity in a thirty-year war against the Zago, inflicting heavy damage on them. Among the legends, there is the Blade Warrior; later generations believed that General Li Feng and the Blade Warrior were likely the same person, but there was no solid evidence.
As the war progressed, the Zago underwent mass evolution, with many Zago soldiers evolving armor that rendered energy weapons ineffective, causing great suffering for humanity and nearly losing the hard-won victory. At this time, FFC Corporation invented a new combat weapon—armed armor, which is essentially equipment that can activate human gene core power. The birth of this weapon led humanity to achieve final victory.
However, the Zago are an indestructible race. In the following four hundred years, humanity and the Zago competed in reproductive ability and evolution speed. The Zago evolved on their own, while humanity evolved through technology.
Armed armor replaced mobile soldiers as the main force against the Zago, making the number of human soldiers crucial. Therefore, during those critical periods, humanity strongly encouraged reproduction.
Human combat power is broken down into three main components: the Eighth Brain Region (commonly known as the Sea of Spirit), gene core power, and armed armor.
Gene core power is a magical force present in the human gene chain. When it erupts, humanity's physical form generates super strong combat power, making even the terrifying Zago bow down. Armed armor maximizes the potential of gene core power while enhancing human defense and adaptability to various survival environments. With countless improvements, armed armor has changed significantly from hundreds of years ago.
The key to activating gene core power lies in the Eighth Brain Region. Humans can only use this power after activating the Eighth Brain Region, a process commonly referred to as awakening. This process is relatively simple, and the success rate is quite high; otherwise, humanity would not be able to contend with the Zago, known for their ferocity in numbers.
Gene core power is like humanity's own arsenal; this cannot be changed. From the outset, it is determined that there is little difference between humans and Iventians. Although Iventians have modified genes, that is merely superficial and does not determine core power. Gene core power is commonly referred to as talent, making bloodlines extremely important, as gene core power can be inherited, determining a warrior's growth potential.
Aside from gene core power, the strength of armed armor depends on how much money you have. Ordinary armed armor merely optimizes the transmission and exertion of combat power, while some high-quality armed armor can enhance effects, of course, at a hefty price. Otherwise, how could FFC Corporation become one of humanity's three major military factories?
However, these are all external factors. What a warrior can determine is the strength of the Eighth Brain Region. The stronger the Eighth Brain Region, the more it can maximize the power of gene core power. For training the Eighth Brain Region, humans, Iventians, and Ketians have developed several complete basic systems, and each major family has its own unique secret techniques that are not passed on.
The strongest, without a doubt, is the Battle God Technique in the Battle God Hall, created by General Li Feng, the Seven-Star General. Only those who enter the Battle God Hall can practice it, and it is also humanity's most mysterious holy place, said to exist in subspace.
Wang Dong has completed his middle school courses and finally reached the age where he can awaken. As long as he successfully awakens, he will have the opportunity to attend a military academy, even if it's a third-rate one, which means Wang Dong will be free from worries about food and clothing in the future!
But... but... the old man traded his free awakening certificate for alcohol... According to the old man, it was an accident...
This free awakening opportunity only comes once, only when a citizen reaches the legal age of fifteen. And such a precious opportunity was traded for a bottle of wine... No, two bottles!
Even if Wang Dong wanted to gather funds to awaken himself, he didn't have to choose to go to Norton for two years of development, but the old man had already signed him up, seemingly having paid a fee. If he were to breach the contract, Wang Dong's young body would be burdened with debt, so he could only go earn his first pot of gold.
Looking at the starry sky outside, Wang Dong could only sigh, wondering what the future would hold. He didn't particularly blame the old man; without him, there would be no Wang Dong. The old man, despite his many flaws, had given him a home instead of leaving him in a cold orphanage. Perhaps there were good opportunities waiting for him on Norton, and he might become a young rich man returning home in glory. By then, if he awakened, he could do it once and throw it away.
Wang Dong's greatest strength was his optimism.
Dear passengers, we are about to enter a twofold light-speed curvature flight. The ship will arrive at the space station in twenty-five Earth hours for a space jump, followed by one hundred twenty Earth hours to reach the destination. During this time, please ensure deep sleep to maintain your physical condition.
The voice in space was still so sweet, but the surrounding passengers couldn't help but curse. However, there was no other choice; sleep was the most economical option, and their ship was not first class. The curvature flight was uncomfortable, and the government was always stingy with the poor.
Wang Dong didn't care; once they entered curvature flight, there was no scenery to see. Besides, space was just stars upon stars. Wang Dong longed for the ground, craved a big can of cola, and a three-layer chicken leg burger. God bless, hopefully, he could eat it all in his dreams.
Sleep always felt short, especially since Wang Dong didn't dream at all. When he opened his eyes again, they had already arrived at a completely unfamiliar star system. This was the Sagittarius star system. Although Wang Dong's knowledge of star geography was poor, he knew it was far from Earth.
The ship slowly landed at the main base of Norton. Through the window, the scenery of Norton was fully visible. No wonder the Norton fleet that discovered this place was so excited; the terrain here indeed resembled Earth by seventy to eighty percent, especially the plants, which were green. This was undoubtedly the greatest visual stimulation for space explorers.
The first impression was excellent. Since they were here, they might as well settle in. At least from the scenery, it was refreshing, and curiosity made people excited.
After passing security checks, the crowd had no time to rest before they began to be assigned. After all, they were here to work and earn money, not to travel.
When it was Wang Dong's turn, the assigning officer was taken aback, shaking his head. Clearly, no one this young had ever come to work here. Since Wang Dong was a typical black-haired, black-eyed Oriental, he appeared even younger. Most likely, he was a victim of neglect by his parents.
Wang Dong, fifteen years old, little buddy, Norton is not paradise. Go back and carefully read the precautions. I hope to see you again in two years. Next!
This was the assigning officer's cheap sympathy. It was indeed not very suitable for young people to come here. The government’s propaganda was certainly beautiful, but in reality? They would soon learn how painful it was to be a pioneer.
The transport ship scattered these people like flowers in the wind to various bases. Wang Dong was assigned to the D-18 mining area. His daily job was to sit in the monitoring base and watch a group of one hundred eighty work robots mine. Of course, the Federation very humanely assigned him an assistant, an intelligent robot butler, numbered C-1847678. The C indicated its low level, simply put, it was there to provide some basic assistance to the workers. Since this guy was quite dark, Wang Dong nicknamed him Black Charcoal.
The first rule of work: do not leave the base, because the gravity on Norton is five times that of Earth. Secondly, the safety factor on Norton is not very high. Unless you are a skilled armed warrior, it's better to keep a low profile.
If something happens while working here, you can only receive a small compensation, as stated in the contract. Wang Dong did not want to trade his life for a few bottles of wine for the old man.
With Black Charcoal's help, Wang Dong generally understood the situation at the base. The role of humans was to supervise; the overall operation of the base was automated, and Black Charcoal's role was to prevent workers like him from going crazy from boredom.
Wang Dong had already slept enough on the ship, and now was the time of excess energy, especially since young people are naturally active. However, he tragically discovered that there were almost no entertainment facilities here, only a gym and a reading room. This planet was still in the development stage, and many facilities were lagging behind. After all, everything costs a lot of money, and the government clearly wouldn't invest in entertainment.
For a whole week, Wang Dong diligently completed every task, using all his rest time to practice his Blade Technique. The early bird catches the worm, and this was also preparation for his future awakening.
This Blade Technique was not the same as the one that made waves four hundred years ago, creating the truly invincible myth of the Blade Warrior. Instead, it was a basic technique used for awakening or in the early stages of awakening. Practicing before awakening could increase the chances of success and stimulate the Sea of Spirit. Continuing to practice after a successful awakening would also help stabilize the Eighth Brain Region. In short, it was a common technique. If you were from a prestigious family, you wouldn't practice such common stuff. Even ordinary people would switch to the school's techniques after entering the academy.
The old man didn't do many good deeds, but this was one of them: teaching him the Blade Technique, helping Wang Dong form his first mental cycle. The old man always boasted that this was his unique skill, completely different from ordinary techniques. If Wang Dong could master it, he could achieve the myth of the Blade Warrior from back then. Of course, if the old man weren't drunk, he might have been more convincing.
The Blade Technique the old man taught was indeed a bit different from the ordinary. Generally, the Blade Technique involves an eight-cycle, centered around the Sea of Spirit, forming a cycle around the eight important gene core power points of the body. But the old man taught him sixteen, which doubled the difficulty. For a rookie whose Eighth Brain Region hadn't been activated yet, Wang Dong suffered greatly, and the key was... there was hardly any special effect!
In this beautiful hellhole, Wang Dong could only pass the time with training. Without armed armor, he would bleed to death shortly after going out.
As an energetic young man, especially a pure virgin, it was quite rare for Wang Dong to settle down.
It's been a week since I came to Norton Star, a very calm week. Occasionally, I think of the old man, but young people really adapt well. To be honest, since I started practicing the Blade Technique, this is the first time I've been so serious. If I don't focus on doing something, I might really go crazy. As long as I form the first cycle, the Blade Technique is generally easy to do, but after a while, it loses its effect. However, the old man's method of cycling doesn't seem to have much effect either, and it takes over five hours to cycle. Who has that much time?
But after handling my own business here, I can only choose to have dumb conversations with the stupid black coal or practice by myself. For my bright future, my great prospects, and for the day I can look down on the old man while tossing him a bottle of wine, I've decided to do some meaningful training.
But heaven doesn't give this hardworking young man a chance. On the morning of the seventh day, it was said that God took a break in history, and the alarm screamed, seemingly trying to pierce Wang Dong's eardrums. Wang Dong saw a screen full of... Zago tribe.
Damn it, which bastard said there were no Zago tribe here!!!